With "When I Die" going out to his deceased grandmother and "Canarsie High" bringing the pathos like never before,
The Grimy Awards could rightfully be seen as the softest album to date from underground rapper and
Non-Phixion member
Ill Bill. Of course, that's with the previous discography being so hardcore that it was almost horrorcore, but the right way to think of this effort is balanced, with
Bill challenging himself -- and his audience -- with a proper stretching of the skill set. Key cut "Exploding Octopus" even brings science and education into the picture, and yet all these advancements are tempered with the familiar
Bill combo of brutish and earnest at all costs, especially when both "In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is the king" and "Stare into the past and see the future lookin' back at you" get barked out over the soulful
Pete Rock production called "Truth." Add names like
DJ Premier,
El-P,
DJ Muggs,
A-Trak, and
H.R. from
the Bad Brains as guests, and this one winds up the
Ill Bill album to pick, winning the Grimy Award for Best Overall and bringing the rapper one step closer to Lifetime Achievement. ~ David Jeffries